When a 1970s hit-making band has long since (30 years) not had a hit and no longer has any of its original members or any from the classic lineup that gave it all its hits, is it better for it to simply stick with playing the hits the way they were recorded, or trying to in some way evolve?

Little River Band, with Wayne Nelson center

That’s the dilemma faced by Little River Band, which played Penn’s Peak near Jim Thorpe on Friday. And the band chose to do a little of both – but neither in a truly satisfactory way.

Clearly, if a band hasn’t had a hit since 1982 and hasn’t even put out an album of new music in more than 20 years, the people who are coming to hear them want the hits. And enough came to Penn’s Peak to nearly fill the place – likely 1,200 or so.

Little River Band played the hits, for sure, in a 14-song, 75-minute show. Not a single one of the songs it played was released after 1985. But when it tried to update the songs, which was often, it diminished them, and when it tried to play them true to the originals, it fell short.

What saved the show, for the most part, was that there are enough hits in the band’s catalog to keep a crowd’s interest, and they played them well enough to do the same.

It helped that bassist Wayne Nelson, who’s been the band’s lead singer since 2000 (and actually sang lead on its 1981 hit “The Night Owls”) has a voice that’s preserved well enough at 62 to sound like original singer Glenn Shorrock did on the hits.

But it didn’t help that the band opened the show with the little-known “It’s a Long Way There” from the group’s 1975 debut disc. While well-sung and played, it hardly captured the audience. And with the second song, “Man on Your Mind,” the band slightly updated the sound of several of its hits, but not for the better.

On “Happy Anniversary,” for example, Nelson asked the crowd to sing along, saying, “This is your party; we’re just the band.” But it was played far jazzier than the original, which was the case with several songs. “The Night Owls,” for example, was stretched to six minutes as a long, jazzy exercise.

Two latter songs, 1983’s “You’re Driving Me Out of My Mind” and 1985’s “Playing to Win,” were mashed together in a funky medley. And when the band played “The Other Guy,” introduced as “our latest single – from 1983,” it was not Nelson who sang it, but guitarist Greg Hind, who joined the band in 2000.

It was just as unfortunate that when the band played the hits in their original arrangements, they didn’t measure up. Its biggest hit, “Reminiscing,” was decent, but didn’t sound as full and deep. Its 1977 breakthrough hit “Help is On Its Way,” which Nelson dedicated to the U.S. military, was OK, but not as inspiring as originally.

The band closed its main set with “Lady,” then as an encore played the 1979 song “Lonesome Loser,” the band’s second-biggest hit. Stretched to eight minutes with audience participation, it came off as lightweight and karaoke rather than the strong closer it could have been.

The best of the night was “Cool Change,” which wisely stuck close to the original arrangement but was extended to 10 minutes with a nice opening piano interlude, then a later guitar duel, then double attack.

It was the song on which Little River Band balanced the best of making a much-loved song a centerpiece and adding to it but keeping what made it so popular in the first place.

It was ironic that opening act Fran Cosmo, who was lead singer in the 1970s group Boston from 1994-2004, made his set successful by playing Boston hits – “Don’t Look Back,” “Smokin’” and others – as they originally sounded.

While Cosmo was neither an original member of Boston nor sang on any of its hits, like Nelson his voice was close enough to approximate that of original vocalist Brad Delp (only on “Peace of Mind” did he come up significantly short).

And the three guitarists Cosmo used precisely recreated Boston guitarist Tom Scholz’s sound (only "More Than a Feeling” came up significantly short). The crowd certainly liked it; they even gave the long, intricate “Foreplay/Long Time” a standing ovation.

In all, it sounded better than the “real” Boston that played Bethlehem’s Musikfest festival last summer. After all, that Boston had just one more original member than Cosmo’s band does, and Cosmo’s a better singer than that group has.

I have no idea where your ears were that night but I've seen them three times so far this year and LRB absolutely ROCKS. The vocals are crystal clear and updated versions of the songs are nothing short of brilliant. If you haven't purchased their new album, "Cuts Like A Diamond" please do. It is fresh, clean, clear and definitely LRB!

Posted By: Rob | Oct 28, 2013 10:25:21 PM

While I wasn't there that night, I've heard LRB try to add flavor to their hits during a concert... and I agree... it misses the point.

However, A Long Way There, is one of their best songs, with a driving, intense back rhythm underneath great vocals and intricate layered guitar work. This would be a great choice to open with.

If you don't know this song and appreciate it as an opener, I wonder how much LRB you know, and if you're really qualified to critique the song choice.

Posted By: Lance | Feb 8, 2014 10:32:25 AM

Wayne Nelson was so full of himself that he stole the LRB from the Australians who created it. I don't understand how she shows his face anywhere, let alone do their songs. I'm American, and cannot believe he took what has always been rightfully theirs.

Posted By: LRBformerFan | Aug 2, 2014 1:45:13 PM

I'm watching the rip off show right now in 2014 and am appauled at this cover band that stole a real band's name & songs

Posted By: wayne woodall | Aug 7, 2014 11:54:39 PM

The Present LRB are a covers band and nothing more

Posted By: V.R. | Sep 10, 2014 11:20:03 PM

I dare them to tour Australia. They will get smashed. Very poor cover band from what I'm told!

Posted By: Murray | Sep 11, 2014 12:57:28 AM

Taking the badge off a Rolls Royce and sticking to Fiat doesn't, won't and never will, make a Fiat a Rolls Royce. You may own the badge Housden, but you'll never own or have the talent or originality of Birtles, Goble and Shorrock and the real LRB. You spotted an opportunity, so go with it and I hope you'll be happy. What you probably (hopefully) didn't realise was the amount of bitterness and unhappiness you'd cause, or estimate the amount of loyalty that the actual Little River band has.

The Australian ATN7 Network's News show SUNDAY. Did a great injustice to the current LRB line up. Nowhere in the LRB segment did they mention that Wayne Nelson sang the lead vocals on LRB's last worldwide hit single "Night Owls."
Nor did they mention that Greg Hind is an Australian member of the band. Greg had played with Graeham Goble on live German TV along with Steve Wade who at one time sang lead vocals in Boble's band and was lead vocalist and guitarist on 5 LRB tours of the USA. To edit out the fact that Wayne made hit music with the Original members was disgusting. To "leave out the fact that Hind is An Aussie is a yellow and cowardly act of giving us any truth. The report says that the band is made up of Yank alone is just not good reporting. Shame on Channal 7.

Posted By: Paul Quinlan | Mar 16, 2015 3:35:06 PM

Stephen Housden came by the band LRB in an honest fashion. The Other guys QUIT the Little River Band. Housden is one of best guitar players to come out of Australia. When you sell your house and take the $$ MONEY $$ you can't come back and STEAL it away from the owner That is what the original members are trying to do. And they are wrong.

Posted By: Paul Quinlan | Mar 16, 2015 3:41:33 PM

Wayne came on the channel 7 show & admitted that his band would be nothing without the original songs. So surely Beeb, Glen & Graham could somehow stop them from singing there songs & then see how they get on.After all they are really doing cover versions of songs by the original band. They should therefore be called a cover band.

Posted By: Darryl Smith | Mar 17, 2015 6:11:56 AM

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JOHN J. MOSER has been around long enough to have seen the original Ramones in a small club in New Jersey, U2 from the fourth row of a theater and Bob Dylan's born-again tours. But he also has the number for All-American Rejects' Nick Wheeler on his cell phone, wrote the first story ever done on Jack's Mannequin and hung out in Wiz Khalifa's hotel room.

OTHER CONTRIBUTORS

JODI DUCKETT: As The Morning Call's assistant features editor responsible for entertainment, she spends a lot of time surveying the music landscape and sizing up the Valley's festivals and club scene. She's no expert, but enjoys it all — especially artists who resonated in her younger years, such as Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Tracy Chapman, Santana and Joni Mitchell.

KATHY LAUER-WILLIAMS enjoys all types of music, from roots rock and folk to classical and opera. Music has been a constant backdrop to her life since she first sat on the steps listening to her mother’s Broadway LPs when she was 2. Since becoming a mother herself, she has become well-versed on the growing genre of kindie rock and, with her son in tow, can boast she has seen a majority of the current kid’s performers from Dan Zanes to They Might Be Giants.

STEPHANIE SIGAFOOS: A Jersey native raised in Northeast PA, she was reared in a house littered with 8-tracks, 45s and cassette tapes of The Beatles, Elvis, Meatloaf and Billy Joel. She also grew up on the sounds of Reba McEntire, Garth Brooks and Tim McGraw and can be found traversing the countryside in search of the sounds of a steel guitar. A fan of today's 'new country,' she digs mainstream/country-pop crossovers like Lady Antebellum and Sugarland and other artists that illustrate the genre's diversity.